Switch Mobility announce Spanish site’s location

Switch Mobility has confirmed its new manufacturing and technology centre will be built on a greenfield site in the Soto de Medinilla area of Valladolid.

The 140,000m2 site, situated within convenient access of the centre of Valladolid, has been selected from a number of suitable locations within the Castilla y Leon Region. The location benefits from strong infrastructure links by road and will enable Switch to develop the facility in several phases, starting with bus production and Research and Development. The site is also perfectly situated to take advantage of the strong automotive supply base within the region.

Switch’s new manufacturing and technical centre will house production of its first electric bus designed specifically for the European market. The new 12 metre product will build on its technology it has worked on since delivering the first British built, electric buses to TfL in 2014.

Utilising the latest NMC battery technology, Switch’s bespoke data analytics systems and lightweight construction methodology, the new product is aimed at optimising the Total Cost of Ownership for local authorities and operators, enabling the decarbonisation of cities and key routes across Europe. Further details on Switch’s new state of the art electric bus will be announced early in the second quarter of 2022.

With construction of the new Spanish site due to commence shortly, Switch Executive Vice Chairman and CEO, Dr Andy Palmer, was joined by Eva Driessen, President of Switch Iberia and members of the Executive Team, to plant several trees on site to celebrate the announcement. These are the first of 2,000 trees Switch will plant in Spain over the coming year (one for every direct job it expects to create at the new manufacturing and technology centre) in support of the company’s commitment to sustainability. The new facility is planned to be entirely carbon neutral throughout the construction process and will continue to operate at a carbon neutral level during vehicle production.

“This new facility will provide us with crucial access to the European bus and light commercial vehicle market” – Dr Andy Palmer, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Switch Mobility

Dr Andy Palmer, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Switch Mobility, said: “We are delighted to have selected Valladolid as the location for our first manufacturing site in continental Europe. The region’s wealth of quality engineers and strong supply chain, combined with Spain’s desire to be a leader in electric buses, make the Soto De Medinella area the perfect location. This new facility will provide us with crucial access to the European bus and light commercial vehicle market.

“Since announcing our plans to invest in Castilla y León, we have been overwhelmed by the level of interest in the project and I would like to thank Reyes Maroto Illera, Alfonso Fernández Mañueco, Oscar Puente and their respective teams, who have worked tirelessly to secure this site for Switch. Despite the challenges posed by Covid-19, which have resulted in the ground-breaking ceremony being postponed until 18 March, we look forward to commencing construction imminently and seeing our first buses in production within the next 12 months.”

  • For more on Switch Mobility’s new bus range, see our latest issue (1606, 28 January 2022).

 

 

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